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REVIEW
INFO FORMATPUB ATLUS PS4 DEVETA ATLUS, STUDIO ZEROOUT NOWCATHERINE:
FULL BODY
Is the past worth revisiting?
T
his is the same campy, romantic
puzzler you knew and loved in 2011...
for better and worse. This expanded
rerelease follows indecisive Vincent as he
finds himself caught between an abundance
of K/C/Qatherines.^1 On top of an extra layer
of polish, there’s a new (and very welcome)
difficulty setting for those more into the
story than the puzzles. A fun, though not
deep, Remix mode introduces Tetris-like
blocks for a twist on the block-pushing
conundrums, and these remain a fiendishly
compelling challenge however you play.
The original’s love triangle is now a
square as Vincent is drawn to another other
woman. Rin is an adorable amnesiac, pure of
heart and someone you can’t help but root
for.^2 She’s a seamless addition to the story,
showing that Vincent is occasionally capable
of making the right choice – though his
interactions with the new, naïve ingenue too
often hit closer to creepy rather than the
cute scenes the game is aiming for.
Rin’s implementation isn’t quite a roaring
success in redressing the original game’s
flaws. That is to say, a lot of the new story
is well-meaning but totally clueless. Besides
that, Vincent and his friends still while away
the night spouting the same reductive ideas
about men, women, and relationships mostly
unchallenged or otherwise re-examined.
New endings mean the leading ladies
feel slightly more fleshed-out, but those
aforementioned old chestnuts have deep
roots in the game’s numerous and extremely
varied – er – routes. That is
to say, it’s more of the same.
Obviously that’s not a bad thing
but, like marriage, it won’t be for
everyone. Jess KinghornFOOTNOTES 1 This joke is way less funny in print. But also far less
confusing, as at least you know who’s who. 2 And she must be
protected at all costs. Defend Rin!INFO FORMATPUB MILESTONE S.R.L. PS4 ETA OUT NOW DEV MILESTONE S.R.L.MXGP 2019
Bumps for one mile. Every mile
F
inally the new MXGP game offers the
current season of real-life MXGP and
MX2 bikes, teams, riders, and tracks.
This makes the already-solid racing feel
much more authentic, and it’s now running
very well indeed on Unreal Engine 4. The
smooth 30fps experience barely stutters,
even when there are 22 bikes on the screen,
each carving a line through the 3D mud^1 on
the track surface as they all attempt the
‘holeshot’ by leading the pack into turn one.
If the 22 real-world tracks aren’t enough
for you, you can make your own. With plenty
of segments available, from banked turns
to ‘dragon’s back’ bump sequences, it’s only
really lacking elevation options and trackside
object placement. You can even post your
masterpiece online for the world to try.
Career mode sees you levelling up to win
better payment from sponsorship contracts,
and there’s a new free-roaming Playground
area to explore, complete with challenges
if you feel like testing your skills and/or
patience. These challenges can be hair-
pullingly frustrating as you manage to do the
hardest bit after ten attempts, only to fall on
the piffling little ramp at the end. The bikes’
handling is rather unpredictable, especially
on bumpy sections. This sport isn’t really
about precision; it’s about getting muddy
and airborne at every opportunity.^2 In terms
of replicating the real sport, it’s a success.
The full-race replays look incredibly realistic- arguably more fun to watch than actually
playing the game, which isn’t ideal.
MXGP 2019 is certainly well-made, offers
a variety of game modes, and
is decently engrossing, but that
finicky handling and relentless
undulation makes it difficult to
enjoy. Justin Towell
FOOTNOTES 1 The ruts don’t seem to catch your wheels – it’s
rather superficial. Pretty though. 2 Seriously, though, do try before
you buy if you suffer from motion sickness. It... moves.INFO FORMATPUB BIGBEN INTERACTIVE PS4 ETA OUT NOW DEV KYLOTONN GAMESWRC 18
Winning the ‘Not Dirt Rally’ class is...
T
his rally sim is at its best when its
weather is at its worst. Huge pine
trees appear out of thick fog, graded
in layers of grey, swaying violently in the
wind as you creep around slippery corners,
trying to nurse your damaged car home.
The challenge is immense, and you’ll often
wonder how you’re managing to survive as
you follow your co-driver’s very English-
sounding instructions^1 through dense,
impressively varied scenery, grazing the
walls of houses as you redline sideways
through hamlets. In these moments, the
essence of rallying is truly captured.
But the storm eventually passes,^2 and
with it the excitement. When the weather
is more clement, it’s a very last-gen-feeling
experience. The graphics lack polish, having
shimmery edges and only updating at 30fps,
which is half the framerate of the amazing
Dirt Rally 2.0. Rock textures look good
enough to eat, but foliage is often poor, and
the game is rarely easy on the eye. The
handling doesn’t quite sit right, either, lacking
aggression at low speed yet feeling slightly
lightweight at full tilt. Handbrake turns are
excellent, though.
The career mode is commendably
management-heavy but very tough if you
have more than one bad rally as repair costs
and staff wages all add up alarmingly quickly.
Fortunately a simple Season mode is also
available if you just want to go racing and
leave the finances to someone else.
With three modern tiers of rallying plus
a load of classic cars to try on 100 unique
stages across 14 different
countries, WRC 8 uses its
licence well, but it’s simply
outclassed by Dirt Rally 2.0. So
try that first. Justin TowellFOOTNOTES 1 You’ll seriously wonder if he’s going to shout ‘Tally
Ho!’, it’s so pronounced. 2 The weather is dynamic, so you may need
to manually switch on the windscreen wipers. Nice.